Insurable Interest Canadian Insurance Blog

Winter driving can take quite a toll on your car (pun intended). Not only is it messy, slippery, and slow – it can also be very expensive. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has reported that a drop in temperature from 24°C to 7°C can increase fuel consumption by 12 to 28 per cent. And with snow, slush and ice on the road, your car works harder to get you where you need to go, meaning that you’re paying more at the pump during the winter than the summer. Even hybrid cars lose efficiency as temperatures drop below freezing. Cold air is denser, which increases drag on your car and reduces gas mileage. Driving slow and diligently means more time spent on the road, and more gas being used. And of course, heaters and defrosters use additional power, leading to more fuel consumption. But since avoiding winter weather isn’t really an option for Canadians, here are some ways to stretch your dollar this season, and save on gas for your car: 1. Inflate your tires regularly Dense, cold air can cause your tires to lose pressure and resist rolling in slush or snow. As a result, your car is working harder to...

The National Association of Insurance Commissioners’ effort to create Actuarial Guideline 49 was a lengthy process aimed at getting indexed universal life illustrations under control. Now, a shade more than three years since AG 49 took effect, it seems the NAIC is ready to tackle it again. An IUL illustration subgroup has a 2019 charge to “provide recommendations for modifications to AG 49 to the Life Actuarial (A) Task Force.” The charge was assigned at the NAIC’s Fall Meeting in November. A spokesman for the association said the subgroup is busy gathering information and no conference calls or meetings have been scheduled. Uniform Illustrations The Goal AG 49 was developed to provide insurance carriers a more uniform method for calculating maximum illustrated rates on IUL products and to help consumers better understand index life insurance product illustrations. The meat of AG 49 requires insurers to illustrate using a benchmark rate which averages all 25-year loopback periods since 1949. They will have to assume the S&P 500, with a zero floor, and some form of cap. There were other components of the regulation, but the goal was to rein in the illustrations, which varied widely and enabled some insurers to show...

Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America announced that Tom Burns, chief distribution officer, will retire from the company, effective on April 15, 2019. Succeeding Burns is Eric Thomes, currently head of field marketing organization (FMO) distribution for the company. Since starting at Allianz Life in 2006, Burns has led the company’s distribution strategies and helped build and grow strong relationships in the FMO, broker-dealer, bank, and brokerage general agent channels. Under his guidance, Allianz Life has become a leader in the fixed index annuity market. He was also instrumental in helping the company expand into the index variable annuity and index universal life markets. “With a distinguished career spanning forty years, including the past twelve at Allianz Life, Tom’s experience and commitment have been incredibly valuable to the company as a whole, and to each individual who works with him on a day-to-day basis,” said Walter White, president and CEO, Allianz Life. “Tom has been a true leader, and I’m very grateful for his success in growing our business and navigating sweeping industry changes.” Thomes brings extensive experience to his new role after 23 years at Allianz Life. During that time, he has held various leadership roles with increasing...

Growing up, I thought I always had a knack for being financially responsible. My parents constantly lectured me about the importance of spending within my means and saving from a young age, so I would be careful not to spend too much while out with friends, and would throw a few dollars in my savings account here and there. But as I got older and more expenses kept popping up – phone bills, car payments and maintenance, and insurance, to name a few – the more I realized there is a lot I don’t know about managing money. Moreover, 2018 was a rollercoaster of a year; a lot happened in my life and my bank account was definitely affected. Sound familiar? If you’re a young adult, you probably understand that turning point when life starts coming at you – fast. And sometimes these growing pains can take a toll on your wallet, that is, until you learn your financial lesson. Here are three important financial lessons I learned in 2018: Lesson #1: Your emotions can really mess up your finances Perhaps one of the most important lessons I learned in 2018 is how emotions can lead to impulse decisions. It’s...

Christmas and New Year’s Day has already come and gone, leaving us to “look forward” to Blue Monday, the (unofficial) most depressing day of the year. In 2019, Blue Monday falls on Monday, January 21, and the day is calculated by factoring in things such as weather and, yes, debt level as people start to receive their credit card statements from December. Maybe this year you – and your wallet – are feeling the blues from a holiday season of high-spending. Paying down your credit card debt may currently be your number one priority and your new year’s resolution is to be more fiscally responsible. So, instead of leaving your holiday planning to last minute and putting everything on credit, you’re going to plan ahead of time… starting now! It may sound unrealistic – who starts planning for Christmas is January? – but the only way to avoid a hangover is by taking preventative measures. Drink a lot of water and follow these simple steps to never have a debt-plagued January again. Sometimes paying off credit card debt can be hard, especially when interest keeps piling up and getting in the way. Found yourself in a similar predicament? Thankfully, the...

Foundation targets $500,000 and long-term drug and alcohol abuse prevention in Quebec

The harsh criticisms that have been levelled against these products may not be entirely deserved

Under certain conditions and circumstances, business owners may deduct premiums they pay for life insurance policies While life insurance is generally considered a personal expense and therefore not something business owners can get tax deductions on, there is a provision under the Income Tax Act that defines some exceptions. “Paragraph 20(1)(e.2) of Canada’s Income Tax Act permits a taxpayer to deduct life-insurance premiums from business income only if the expense satisfies three conditions,” wrote David Rotfleisch, tax lawyer at Rotfleisch & Samulovitch P.C., in a recent commentary. According to Rotfleisch, a deduction may be applied if a “restricted financial institution” acquired an interest in a life-insurance policy in the context of a loan transaction. Additionally, the lending institution — a bank, a credit union, a trust company, or an insurance company, for example — must have specified life insurance as collateral for the loan. Finally, the borrower may otherwise deduct the loan’s interest from taxable income. “In short, you may deduct life-insurance premiums if a bank or similar financial institution required you to put up life insurance as collateral for a loan, and you obtained the loan to finance your business,” he said. However, when a business owner voluntarily puts...

The province said an investment of $105 million over three years will ease the burden for 240,000 BC households